Progression of a Casuarina

Very nice Dorothy, I like your concept for the winding shari.




BTW, Australian pine is a great bonsai if you like to work on bonsai, they grow so darn fast, and throw buds everywhere especailly this time of year. One can work on them every day.

Dorothy,
I'm new to the forum and love your trees. You are a talent! Thank you for posting all of the pics and progressions. Not to drag up an pld post, but I loved the Hollywood Juniper posts a while back. Are you posting new pics of the current tree. I have two that I am working on here in California.
Steve

I saw it Dorothy..very nice Casuarina. Just be very very careful with the deadwood on Casuarina, they can hardly last too long...

Hi Robert.

I sent you PM regarding Casuarinas. Might help others if I asked it here too.
Is it not advisable for the specie to be designed with deadwood feature? how long would it last?


regards,
jun

Not at all if you are expecting the jin like on Junipers or pines, because deadwood in Casuarina will rot out very easily even well taken care...even worse in the high humidity climate as you and we have... My Casuarina, the best I had ever had and taken care, only last less than 5 years...

We always avoid any open cuts and heal all the scars. So for Casuarina, we either make a perfect un-defective style or make an extreme design with only thin cambium trunk in literati style (let all the wood rotten out)...
In the case of Dorothy's, if it rotten out one day..she can still re-style it in an extreme literati...so it will still be a nice bonsai.

This is one of my Casuarina I need to transform the style due to the rotting trunk...

Thanks Robert!
I'll consider this in the design of my casuarinas, most have open deadwoods.

Nice tree by the way, I saw this in your "mission of transformation" book that I borrowed from a friend. By the way is the book still available? please PM me on how to avail it.

regards,
jun

Yes, you can order both of my books "Vision of My Soul" and "Mission of Transformation" through www.stonelantern.com

Thanks Robert!

i saw the book. very elegant and informative too. I'll order both books. Kindly sign it for me...I'm your biggest fan. hehehe.

Sorry Dorothy, it so difficult to get hold of Robert...a very busy man.

regards,
jun

Tona wrote:Dorothy,
I'm new to the forum and love your trees. You are a talent! Thank you for posting all of the pics and progressions. Not to drag up an pld post, but I loved the Hollywood Juniper posts a while back. Are you posting new pics of the current tree. I have two that I am working on here in California.
Steve

Hi Tona,

welcome to IBC! This is a good place to be. Here is a pic of the juniper you are talking about, I just took it. Torulosa takes quite some time to develop pads, seems like. I thinned out the tree a few days ago:

Hey Robert,

good to hear from you! I have heard about the deadwood with Cauarinas several times now and am considering less deadwood in general when planning one. The literati you recall is doing fine - for now. However, I never "finished" pulling the bark off around the trunk (twist). Mainly because of what you told me about the deadwood.

Jun, whatever it takes to communicate with Robert! He is a great artist, isn't he..

-dorothy

dorothy7774 wrote:Hey Robert,

good to hear from you! I have heard about the deadwood with Cauarinas several times now and am considering less deadwood in general when planning one. The literati you recall is doing fine - for now. However, I never "finished" pulling the bark off around the trunk (twist). Mainly because of what you told me about the deadwood.

Jun, whatever it takes to communicate with Robert! He is a great artist, isn't he..

-dorothy

...yes Dorothy, He is a great artist. his works are very different from the "rest". Always with movement and the powerful "story" of the tree is always present in his works. In the west John Naka made a famous statement "....try to make your bonsai look like a tree"...I think Robert moved beyond those words.
...and for the artists around here, and the "artists" trying hard to be (including me hehehe), I suggests to try to study his works, you'll probably pick up a lesson or two.

regards,
jun

dorothy7774 wrote:Hey Robert,

good to hear from you! I have heard about the deadwood with Cauarinas several times now and am considering less deadwood in general when planning one. The literati you recall is doing fine - for now. However, I never "finished" pulling the bark off around the trunk (twist). Mainly because of what you told me about the deadwood.

Jun, whatever it takes to communicate with Robert! He is a great artist, isn't he..

-dorothy

Hi Dorothy,
I love your casuarina the way you made it, its true that casuarinas will not tolerate man made sharis and jins but then it will take years before what you fear happens so in the meantime, enjoy your tree the way it is.Next time, you get casuarina materials with natural sharis, all my casuarinas have natural sharis,some were collected 10 years ago and the sharis are as good as when they were collected,

Best regards
ka pabling

Ka Pabling wrote:

dorothy7774 wrote:Hey Robert,

good to hear from you! I have heard about the deadwood with Cauarinas several times now and am considering less deadwood in general when planning one. The literati you recall is doing fine - for now. However, I never "finished" pulling the bark off around the trunk (twist). Mainly because of what you told me about the deadwood.

Jun, whatever it takes to communicate with Robert! He is a great artist, isn't he..

-dorothy

Hi Dorothy,
I love your casuarina the way you made it, its true that casuarinas will not tolerate man made sharis and jins but then it will take years before what you fear happens so in the meantime, enjoy your tree the way it is.Next time, you get casuarina materials with natural sharis, all my casuarinas have natural sharis,some were collected 10 years ago and the sharis are as good as when they were collected,

Best regards
ka pabling

Ka,

I wished I could find Casuarinas with natural shari! Next time we have a storm, I will leave all my Casuarina material outside, in the middle of the yard, instead of protecting them from the elements. Not that I am daring a future storm, but somehow I'd like to take advantage of a quick nature fix..

-dorothy

jun wrote:..

...and for the artists around here, and the "artists" trying hard to be (including me hehehe), I suggests to try to study his works, you'll probably pick up a lesson or two.

regards,
jun

Or three..

-dorothy

Hi Dorothy

To wait for storms to do the shari for you? why not, it will be done in 10 years or so.
Most of the casuarina bonsai materials we have here have sharis . These trees were probably cut by chainsaws,burned by kaingeros,struck by lightning etc etc and they survived to become stunning, and exotic bonsais. Those that did not encounter these calamities grew into large, straight healthy trees.

I am sure you can also find some somedays, Its part of our bonsai journey.

Best regards,

ka pabling

ps, dont buy a chainsaw

Hey Dorothy,

Any more updates on this fantastic tree?

Have a great week!!!
Sam

Sam Ogranaja wrote:Hey Dorothy,

Any more updates on this fantastic tree?

Have a great week!!!
Sam

Hi Sam, I can tell you like the tree..It's doing great. I trimmed it back hard last month, the apex was getting too strong. It's getting bushy again.

dorothy7774 wrote:

Sam Ogranaja wrote:Hey Dorothy,

Any more updates on this fantastic tree?

Have a great week!!!
Sam

Hi Sam, I can tell you like the tree..It's doing great. I trimmed it back hard last month, the apex was getting too strong. It's getting bushy again.

Girl, where you been??

Glad to see you, and this great tree, back again. Thanks for the ficus thread too!

R

Russell Coker wrote:..

Girl, where you been??

Glad to see you, and this great tree, back again. Thanks for the ficus thread too!

R

Thanks. I am spending too much time on facebook, I guess..

-Dorothy

Dorothy
Would you talk about how you create and maintain your foliage pads. Thanks.

Bob Pressler wrote: Dorothy
Would you talk about how you create and maintain your foliage pads. Thanks.

Hi Bob,

we have so many excellent Casuarina growers onboard, that hopefully some of them may share their experiences with this species.

Funny thing is I get to be asked the how-to with the foliage pads quite often. My usual answer is, I create the foliage pads like with any other fast growing tropical. Assumingly we are all familiar with the basic task of growing the basic branches with Casuarina, then the sidebranches, and eventually the top. During this process of growth and pruning you will start to create future pads, not so much because of the looks, but because you let the light reach the interior of the tree. Casuarina is very susceptible to dieback due to lack of sunlight.

In the early development - and this is something that works in my backyard - you don't have to neccessarily hand plug the "needles". You can use a scissor. However, the scissor will limit the amount of new "needles" emerging from the actual leaves, the point of where the "needle" breaks. So the initial foliage pad will not be as full. If you are in a more advanced stage, you need to hand plug the "needles". Almost every leave will develop a new shoot. I hand plug my Casuarinas with virtually both hands twisting the "needles" with my fingers. Any tough growth I trim with the scissor.

While you are growing lateral foliage pads you may have to weaken the apex area of the top. To strengthen the sidebranches-when growing pads or in general- you leave the apical main shoot on (every branch/ branchlet). For some reason I take more time than other growers and virtually build one branch after the other. Though it takes a bit longer, the trunk develops more character than growing everything at the same pace. It can also be overwhelming when growing several trees and trying to keep control of the growth. It is easier (to me) to weaken some bugger branches and grow others.

I do not maintain the pads throughout the year. Once the tree has structure and I am planning to perhaps present it in an exhibit, I work the pads short with the method described above. I do this in time prior to the show, so I can have additional new growth on the tree, basically like with any other show-ready tree.

After the show, I allow the tree to again grow freely. In my experience you will show a Casuarina only in 2 consecutive years. Then the tree needs a rest. Otherwise it will weaken and may show some dieback. Do not leave wire on the Casuarina during winter. They will show dieback in the following spring. It happened to 3 trees of mine.

Most important to keep in mind, you will only have pads if you have structure. Like with any other tree, tropical or not.

Best,
Dorothy

ps. I love that forest you created some time ago!!

Thanks Dorthy. I've only styled these as weeping style trees before. I have one now that needs to grow out after getting lots of dieback from the couple of cold days we had this winter and want to do something different then I have before.
Glad you like the forest-too bad you're 3000 miles away, we can use help pinching it now.

Dorothy,
Thanks for the foliage pads maintenance tip
Very insightful!

Hello Dorothy,

I like very much your work. the Casuarina fantastic.

Regards,
Efi

[quote="dorothy7774]


In the early development - and this is something that works in my backyard - you don't have to neccessarily hand plug the "needles". You can use a scissor. However, the scissor will limit the amount of new "needles" emerging from the actual leaves, the point of where the "needle" breaks. So the initial foliage pad will not be as full. If you are in a more advanced stage, you need to hand plug the "needles". Almost every leave will develop a new shoot. I hand plug my Casuarinas with virtually both hands twisting the "needles" with my fingers. Any tough growth I trim with the scissor.

[/quote]

Hi Dorothy,

Love your work!!! Would you please explain for those inexperienced like myself what you mean by "hand plug the needles"? Also can you please tell me the difference between "needles" and "actual leaves" on a casuarina??

Thanks and keep up the great work.